A Sport for Gyms … Part 1 (of 3)

Sean Blyth .. Creator of the World Gym Challenge

Its important to reflect over the past years for WGC to recognise its contribution in spearheading the campaign for a Sport for Gyms. In this instance its not a gloating jamboree of  self-indulgence and highlighting the spotlight of why WGC has tried this fight single handled , but to set the record straight.

Listen to the horses mouth so to speak, not sharp criticism from those who have taken an easy route to point the finger, spread gossip and not believe in the sport aspect– those people and you know who you are will never support a Sport for Gyms, just continue to criticise the ongoing struggle to increase awareness to Gym Sport.

So for me it's important to say those that don't actually know the story that this three parter will set the record straight. WGC was built to centralise the results for a Sport for Gyms. At the time of its creation it saw a infrastructure in place world wide that made the perfect opportunity for a sport to grow. It made perfect sense to try and incorporate the internet and let the growth aspect develop for a sport that had equipment, members and venues in place already.

But unfortunately Sport is very complicated and its certainly not for those who haven't got the heart for a long and weary fight . So this then is my side ...

So why was WGC created ?

Because the Internet was just beginning to emerge in 2006. An opportunity was seized to increase a sport which was predominantly going to grow through an online presence.  Social media was growing in things like Friends Reunited at that stage and this was before Facebook and Twitter . The Internet was the next best thing and emails were taking over as the way to communicate.  So a sport for gyms , that grew from the Internet was the vision.

What problems were there in the early days?

Problems started almost as soon as the site was built. The cost of the site then £20,000, The legal fees ran into another £10, 000 and then there was continued admin costs for updates. Building bespoke websites and securing Trademark names is not cheap, but to make an exclusive sport, the groundwork has to be done.

So start of and grow ..

No , this has never been the case, although every business that starts has this vision. First thing to do was contact all the organisers and have a chat with them about future growth. This was done over dinner and although hesitant, the website was considered a good idea and the green light was on.

Just as the green light to go was given, the brakes came slamming down in a thunderous fashion. There was a massive spanner in the works. World Gym , the then  second biggest gym franchise in the world – tried to stop the name World Gym Challenge as a trademark. A legal battle ensued, and it turned out World Gym were not in the class that World Gym Challenge has classified its trade mark in, so were good to go again.

Starting off

It would be fair to say, that at the time of its creation, there were no results that were regulated into a single database for recognition of events. This was the premiss of WGC, to incorporate all results into a database from all gyms all over the world, thus creating a single hub of information about the results.

It was there also, to photograph, and bring to the attention of the event and those who took part into media spotlight.

Media and Marketing

To do this is pretty much impossible, by yourself, so the need to find a niche and a buzz, that just may well kick stat excitement was needed. Stash clothing and For Goodness Shakes were just two of the companies who in the early days supported the events. They didn't’t just appear , this was conducted after extensive emails and visiting offices in Leicester and London. To this day Stash is still a unique blend of rugby wear and I feel they missed out on gym wear is heading. For Goodness Shakes they continue in all main Supermarkets and Petrol stations.

WGC was caught up in a meeting that was cancelled two hours before with Gatorade to see if they wanted to be involved. Gatorade in the UK is a fairly bland brand– but in the US one of the largest suppliers of Sports Drinks – it was singularly probably the biggest disappointment to date.

CrossFit makes their name in the US …

Around the same sort of time as WGC trying to increase awareness in the 2006 / 2008 / 2009 / era a movement was happening in the US that was getting more and more attention called CrossFit .

It was easy to see the two were in a parallel world, the sport of Fitness and a Sport for Gyms.. There was also something called Strend I kept my eye on (Strngth / Endurance) but I’ve nor heard much of them since. Unlike CrossFit … !

The first event WGC was ever involved with was The Gorton Grueller in 2006 we are now at our 10 year marker. So id like to see where things have gone since then.

This was the first ever race report and results.

I thought the way to grow the Sport was UltraFIT magazine and The Royal Marines was the best option.

The next part will be about the magazine that started it all and The Royal Marines ...